What is Occupational Therapy?

Occupational Therapist specialize in assessing function. Occupations refer to the daily activities people engage in as individuals or with others and in their community. This includes personal self care, home management, productivity such as work, social interaction, leisure, and other activities with meaning. Occupational therapy improves, adapts or restores the ability to participate in such activities despite impairments or limitations in physical, mental and psycho-social functioning.  Occupational Therapists provide case management, consulting, assessments, treatment planning and solutions to improve or regain function or adaptations to restore engagement in activities.

 

Occupational Therapists are creative problem solvers

Occupational Therapists (OTs) are creative problem solvers; if there is an activity with meaning that you want to be able to do again, OTs will manage your rehabilitation and specialize in finding a way for you to be able to do that activity again with independence.

For example, if a client wants to be able to bath independently again after injuring their back and arms.  Then the OT would specifically focus on making that possible, which could  include environmental modifications to make it safe plus possible, adaptive equipment and restoring functional mobility to the injured areas.  OT’s would focus on the fine hand and arm and body movements necessary for bathing oneself and more.

Why you need Occupational Therapy

At Arukah Rehab our Occupational Therapists (OTs) provide a wide variety of services. From helping you advocate for funding from insurance based on OT assessments, to getting you the right treatment from a multidisciplinary team of health professionals, we have you covered. Our OT will also help to get you the right equipment to adapt to lifestyle changes and function. We are experienced in dealing with ICBC and will manage your case and whole rehabilitation process, so you can focus on returning to a normal lifestyle.

In addition to dealing with ICBC cases, we offer Occupational Therapy consulting services to assess and treat a wide range of conditions from physical and brain injuries, neurological, musculoskeletal, mental illness, and other dysfunctions. We also are able to provide pediatric Occupational Therapy services to young children with developmental delays or illness.

Occupational Therapists (OTs) are the only health professionals that take into account the relationship between a client, the environment, and their activities/roles while assessing and recommending adaptive equipment or environment modifications.

Our Occupational Therapist bring professional knowledge of functional mobility, cognitive function, psycho-social and mental functioning and occupational participation. Our OTs are experts in body, mind, lifestyle function, and human development.  We will take into account changes in your lifestyle, habits, routines and functional mobility, including physical, behavioral, social, and cognitive changes throughout your lifespan. Our OTs will use a client-centered, holistic and participatory approach to intervention.

We will help you to reach your functional goals in an effort to regain your independence with instrumental activities of daily living and activities of daily living.

Here are some examples of the services we provide:

• Identifying a client’s needs, goals, obstacles and supports necessary to engage in  participation in meaningful activities, roles, and occupations.
• Cognitive and physical assessments plus treatment plan.
• Consultations and strategies that promote healthy habits in physical, mental, emotional and social well being.
• Home safety and accessibility assessments.
• Ergonomic analysis at home and or the work place
• Adaptive equipment recommendations; equipment, technology, and environmental modifications to increase accessibility.
• Fitting, customizing, and configuring equipment to meet our clients’ specific needs.
• Training clients, caregivers, and family members on safety and smooth operation of equipment and technology use.
• Active rehabilitation with our kinesiologist in a gym or home to reach functional goals. Safe movements are taught to adapt to injuries or dysfunction.
• Hospital discharge coordination.
• Advocating for funding approval from insurance where applicable and obtaining the necessary equipment to assist or to adapt, modify an environment to improve engagement in activities that have meaning to our individual clients
• Pain management
• Brain injury rehabilitation.
• Vocational planning and return to work program.
• Case management plus follow up consultations, assessments, and progress reports.